While the grandparents were young, they watched TV commercials that promoted smoking as being healthy for anyone. The problem of smoking and its serious consequences for health has become extremely relevant during the COVID-19 pandemic. After all, smokers, whose lungs were usually depleted of nicotine and resins, were at increased risk of infection. In addition, their weakened immune system and frequent and chronic problems with the respiratory system, for example, asthma, could not cope with the virus on their own. Therefore, such infected persons were more likely to suffer from severe consequences. The efforts of many medical professionals over many decades have been directed at destroying a business empire built on extremely unhealthy products and resulted in harm reduction doctrine. However, this empire always managed to strike back. Therefore, through mechanisms of authorized legislative and law enforcement bodies using medical research, society should solve the tobacco problem.
I have spectated cases of severe effects from alcohol consumption and lung cancer caused by smoking. This influenced my worldview and desire to change the existing state because I believe any child should not have to see the horrors caused by the inability to give up bad habits. Hazard minimization is a supplement to stopping tobacco consumption and making it easier to attain cessation rather than taking precedence over them (Hatsukami & Carroll, 2020). A shift in the conception of tobacco products regulation is required because, in my opinion, the current and widely accepted harm reduction philosophy has not lived up to the expectations put on it.
Statistics are an unquestionable indicator of how devastating and deadly the effects of smoking are on one’s health. The majority of deaths in the USA that may be prevented are caused by tobacco smoking, which accounts for about $175 billion in yearly medical expenses in the country. Many respiratory conditions, such as lung cancer, respiratory failure, and progressive inflammatory pulmonary illness, result from tobacco use. Almost 16 million individuals in the US live with a tobacco-related illness, with the proportion of tobacco consumption among people in the country in 2019 being 34.1 million (Eakin et al., 2022). The social repercussions of smoking are especially significant since passive smoking jeopardizes the lives of the smoker’s loved ones and himself. The smell of smoke and cigarettes is rather revolting, which may lead to family arguments and the persistent urge to smoke. Frequently going out can sabotage many crucial interactions and occasions.
Critics of the abovementioned viewpoints cite the economic impact of nicotine addiction. The quantity of taxes paid is spectacular in terms of budgetary income because the tobacco sector is one of the most lucrative ones, but the majority of these monies are used for medical treatment to treat smoking-related illnesses. Although using tobacco has no economic advantage for the consumer, there are large expenses associated with the habit, so if the user stops, his quality of living will likely improve dramatically on all fronts, not just his health (Eakin et al., 2022). According to the principles of state regulation of private spheres of a person’s life, his rights and freedoms allow him to do whatever he wants without going beyond the legal boundaries. Because of this, even when bad habits are harming a person’s health, they have the right to spend money that they have earned legitimately.
Thus, it is required to implement a system of measures to address the issue of tobacco products, which should be based on new legislation to assure compliance. All scented smoking goods, including those with peppermint, must be taken off the industry. According to the World Health Organization, tax rates on nicotine consumption must be raised. Any location must strictly control cigarette or vape marketing targeting young people and underprivileged communities. These prohibitions serve as instructive examples of the newly developed ideology, which intends to completely ban the use of tobacco products by the general public. The popularization of medical and governmental advice is essential to achieving this aim since it depends on society’s acceptance and compliance.
References
Eakin, M. N., Bauer, S. E., Carr, T., Dagli, E., Ewart, G., Garfield, J. L., Jaspers I., Kher S., Leone F. T., Melzer A. C., Moazed F., Moraes T. J., Reddy K. P., Upson D., & Kathuria, H. (2022). Policy recommendations to eliminate tobacco use and improve health from the American Thoracic Society Tobacco Action Committee. Annals of the American Thoracic Society, 19(2), 157–160. Web.
Hatsukami, D. K., & Carroll, D. M. (2020). Tobacco harm reduction: Past history, current controversies and a proposed approach for the future. Preventive medicine, 140, 106099. Web.